Since 1979, the 27th floor observation lounge of the World Trade Center has been the best vantage point to consider Baltimore.
Beyond the glittering Inner Harbor are the smokestacks of Sparrows Point, once a leading steel mill in the world. Switch your angle and you can view the city's growth northward. There are no clearly visible demarcation lines, but those in the know can visually approximate North Avenue, the northernmost border the city until 1816, and then try to spot neighborhoods from Forest Park and Mount Washington to Roland Park and Govans, which were annexed before the current boundaries were reached in 1918.
These kinds of lessons in Baltimoreana are likely to become even more instructive and interesting when new, jazzed-up exhibits are installed by 1997, the 200th anniversary of the city's incorporation. They will tell the story of the city's birth and development and will serve as a reference point for further excursions.
"It will tell who we are and how we've evolved and where Baltimore will be in the new millenium," says Bill Gilmore, the city's promotion director. "It pulls in the story of people and land -- past, present and future -- and that makes it more interesting."
Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke has approved the concept and told his minions to raise between $3 million and $5 million to turn it into reality.
Since its opening 15 years ago, the observation area has drawn some 175,000 paying visitors a year. Once the new "urban geography" attractions are added, the numbers should soar.
Using the latest technology, the exhibits will underscore Baltimore's outreach. The message that will be implanted in visitors is that Baltimore and Maryland are significant players on the world stage -- in an increasingly global age.
"It's going to be a world-class attraction," enthuses Dale Petroskey, a vice president of the National Geographic Society. "It will show, from a wonderful vantage point in Baltimore, how the city grew and why. It's a very creative approach."
We welcome this idea. It promises to be an educational tool that will benefit residents and visitors alike and make them understand how we became what we are.